


A Broken Songbird Still Can Sing

by Doctor_Discord



Series: The Ego Manor [47]
Category: Video Blogging RPF
Genre: And Dark is Done With Him, Anti is a little shit, But only like heavily implied, Interrogation, Kidnapping, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Rescue Missions, Silver has PTSD, Superheroes, Torture
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-06
Updated: 2019-03-03
Packaged: 2019-11-08 09:45:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 5,811
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17979011
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Doctor_Discord/pseuds/Doctor_Discord
Summary: The Silver Shepherd and Jackieboy Man apprehend what they think is just a simple robbery, but things quickly escalate until they find themselves kidnapped and in chains and no idea what's going to happen next.Meanwhile, Dark and Anti are raising HELL in order to find their family.





	1. Chapter 1

The Silver Shepherd and Jackieboy Man both dropped to Earth, standing with their hands on their hips. Before them was a jewelry store in the middle of being _robbed_ , a man with a black fabric mask covering the upper half of his face standing in the center. At least a dozen hostages were pressed against the right wall, kneeling with their heads bowed and hands behind their back. Silver flinched slightly at the sight of the gun held in the man’s hand and Jackie scowled. “Hey! Asshat! Just what do you think you’re doin’?”

The man whirled around and immediately his face split in a wide grin once he spotted them. “Oh good! You’re here. I was beginning to worry I hadn’t gone big enough to get your attention.”

Silver and Jackie exchanged confused, worried glances. “’Our attention’?” Silver’s hands dropped from his hips. “What did you want us for?”

The man waved his hand, gun held loosely in the other. “We can chat about the details later, right now, I’m going to ask you to come with me.”

Jackie scoffed, raising an eyebrow. “Buddy, we’re not goin’ _anywhere_ with you. Now just put the gun down and let the hostages go.”

The man hefted the gun, almost seeming surprised he was holding it. “Oh, this thing? It’s more insurance than anything. I wasn’t planning on using it.” His grin widened. “Though, if you don’t come with me, I might just have to.”

Something cold settled in Silver’s gut, and he glanced at Jackie. The Septic’s eyes were narrowed to slits as he studied the other man. “And what if we don’t?”

The man cocked his head to the side, grin slipping into feral territory. “Then I’ll just have to make you. I’m quite persistent.”

Out of the corner of his eye, Silver saw one of the hostages shift – a young man, bordering on being a kid – and raise his head slightly. His eyes widened, and he shifted again, glancing at the man before his eyes darted back to them. “ _Look out!_ ”

The man snarled, whipping his head toward him at the same time the two heroes whirled around. Someone _else_ had been creeping up behind them, wielding a large wooden bat. Both of their auras flared with panic but it was too late; the bat cracked against Jackie’s skull and he crumpled, blood trickling from his nose. Silver backed away as the other turned on him, fear making his blood run cold.

And then he heard the gunshot.

He spun back around, completely _freezing_ at the sight of the kid slumped over, forehead pressed to the floor with a blood splatter behind him and a pool of red slowly spreading beneath him, the other hostages wide-eyed with terror. Silver’s ears rung. And then he was staring down at someone very different, a young man with blond hair and a blissful smile on his face as he bled out on the floor, staining his blue mask purple and a gun in hand. The sound of a gunshot echoed deafeningly in his ears.

Something hit the back of his head _hard_ and everything erupted to black.


	2. Chapter 2

Dark was in the kitchen when he heard Ed’s shout.

“Dark! Get in here! You’re gonna wanna see this!”

He made his way toward the living area with an eyebrow raised. He found most of the other egos piled in the room, all staring in shocked horror at the TV.

Dark allowed his gaze to follow theirs and his form immediately split with rage and _fear_ as he saw Silver, being filmed by some news crew (they tended to follow him and Jackieboy Man around like lost puppies), get hit on the head with a bat. He watched as he crumpled to the ground next to Jackie, who was already down. The bigger man with the bat picked Silver up nearly effortlessly, draping him over his shoulder, and a smaller man walked out of whatever building they were in front of, picking up the lither Septic before they ran off screen.

Dark saw red.

He didn’t have time to let his rage grow, however, before every electronic in the vicinity – including Google and Bing – began to glitch violently, the lights humming and flickering above them before they exploded, raining glass onto the living area and several of the egos yelped. Dark whirled around, scanning the area with narrowed eyes, aura whipping around him with his two doubles snarling at his sides.

And then Antisepticeye, in all his glitchy, static-filled glory, was standing in the middle of the room. His body was barely recognizable, more or less a cloud of streams of code and black and green static with vague distinctions of a head and limbs. He hissed, locking eyes with Dark. “T͚̊h̹̎ë̞ ̰̆o̦̕n̻͘l̤y͌͜ ̹͗r̡͡e̢̒a̦̔s͙̓o̼̊n̾͜ ̈͢I̭̍'͚̒m͕̾ ̇͢ _h̿ͅȇ͕r̡͐e͓̽_ ̓͜i̝͡ň̟s͔͑t̠͑e̗̾a̞͐d̝͒ ̘͑o̠̿f̬͆ ̨́r̜̚u̕͟n̩̈́n̹̆i̊͜ṋ̅g̮͂ ̭̊m̔͟y̘ ̦͂k̟̄n͊ͅi̮̎f̹̈́ȅ̞ ͚̐ţ͛ḣ̩r͉͘o̭̕ủ̫g̨̎ḩ̀ ̹͠w͖̋h̟̐ă̜t̛͟e͚̍v̤̀ḛ̈́ṙ̖ ̞͒ _s͖͐c̙͐ȕ̲m̦̈_ ̾ͅẗ́͜o̦̚o͋͜k̫̇ ̬̿m̝͛y̡̍ ̲̍l̥͝i̮͗t͚̕t͖͐l̪͑ê͜ ̚͢ b͑ͅr̞̾o̜̔t̓͢h̞̎e͍̊r̗,̞͊” he spat, eyes glowing a brilliant, sickly green as the wound on his throat began to weep, “i̺͞s̡͂ ͖͡b̼͗e̖͊c̩̓a̽ͅṷ̄s̗̽e̲ ͓̌Ị̄ ͔͡ḱ̼n̢̐o̤͌w͇̔ ̩̓o͖͠n̦͂e͚̽ ̹̊o̹̽f̞̊ ̟͆ŷ̦ọ͗u̥͐r̉ͅs͙̕ ̊͜ẅ̘å̡s̫͑ ̢͆ŝ̠t͇͐o̊͟l̯͝e̱͊n̞͘ ̖̏a͇͊š̘ ̞̔w͕e̤͊l̫͘l̲͂.͍̕ ̨̏S̱̄o͍͌ ̧͊y̝̐ọ̍ǘ̟'͒͢ȑ̡e͔͐ ̠̑e̻į͝th̺̎e͉͞r̺͐ ̣̾c͙̉o͙͒m̲̒i̥̚n̙̒g̘͘ ̖͌ _w̛̼i̟t̤h̭̕_ ̻͠m͉̏ḙ̿,̯͘ ̨̍o̝͝r͖̊ ̽ͅÌ͍ ̭̚a̫͑m̮̕ ̚͢ g̹̕o̺̊i͜͠n̩͗g̬̋ ̮̑a̰̓l̬̾ō͟n̩̂e̻͆,̪̀ ̘̅ä̹́n̜͋d̦̕ ̣̓ _Ĭ͟_ ̫̏ǫ̕n̳̋l͜y̰̓ ͎͝c͙a͍͌r̲̈́ė͍ ̻̊ȧ̹b̦̔o͈̓u̩͋t͓̋ ͖̏ _J̣̎a̛͚c͍̆ķ͠i̢̅e̱̿_.͇͛ ͍͛G̱̏o͕͊ṫ̜ ̮̂t̅͜ḩ͞ä̗ṱ̓?͊͜”

Dark growled low in his chest, aura _writhing_ as his twin souls _screamed_. “Oh I’m coming with you.” His lips upturned in a cruel imitation of a smile. “I was just about to go get you myself.”

Anti laughed, gradually becoming more solid, and he smirked. “Y̟͆ơ͉u̞͡'̹̾r̗̆e̫͒ ̥͞g̮͗ē͉t̙̿t̮͆i̜͊n̬̏g̡͋ ̪͆s̙͘l̲̀o̜͘w̾͢,̛̬ ͇̽o̭͞l͚͞ḓ͊ ͖̈́ m̠̔a̹̾n̟͝.̙̂ ̺̈́P̧̚ë̱ř͕h͓̄a͉͌p͈s̤̾ ̘͒Ĭ̟ ̬̆ _s̯̍ḩ͋o͇̕u̝̕l̘̀ḋ̪_ ͖͗j̻͋u̬͡s͍̍t͚͝ ̺̌g̫o̻͛ ̮̇ô͜n͈͋ ̫̎m̘͡y͉̿ ͕̆o͔̕w̗̓ṋ͋.̕͢”

Dark growled again, hands clenching into fists behind his back. “Anti, we don’t have _time_ for this. The more time you waste antagonizing me, the more likely that _something_ is happening to our respective own. As much as I _despise_ you, we must work together on this one.”

Anti hissed, his snake-like tongue poking out between his teeth, and crossed his arms. “Ỷ̫o̫͠ǘ̹ ̮̈h͚́a̜̓v͖̂e͎̍ ̚͢a͕͘ ͘͢p̺̓o͊͜i̩͋ṋ͋t̗̊.̘̔ ̱͡ _F̹̐í̼n͍̎e̟͗_ ,̤̿ ͉̈́l͖̉e̢̕t̖͋'̮̕s̄ͅ ̰͊ğ͔o̬̒.̱͝ ̗͆Ť͎h͙͡ėͅy̟̾ ̞̕c͔͠ô̞u̻͛l͓̂d̝̉ ͚̉b͚͛e̥͡ ̹á͔n̥͂y̥w̓ͅh̉͢ë͙r̞͐e̝͂.̙͋”

Dark grinned, tearing a hole in the Void and summoning his cane. He gestured to the tear. “After you.”


	3. Chapter 3

When Silver woke, the first thing he noticed was that his head _really_ _fucking hurt_. He winced, hissing through his teeth, and nearly didn’t notice the clinking sound the movement caused.

He froze.

_Wait…_

His head shot up – which he immediately regretted _ow_ – and he glanced up, beginning to breathe hard as panic set in. His arms were pulled above his head, thick chains wrapped around his wrists and suspending him from the ceiling. His toes barely scraped the floor, and when he attempted to kick out, he was met with a sharp pain and more clinking, his ankles shackled to the floor.

He squeezed his eyes shut, head lolling back on his shoulders as he tried _desperately_ not to panic but it _really_ wasn’t working with his head throbbing in time with his pulse and blood rushing in his ears. Glancing around rapidly for _anything_ to assist him, he started when he spotted Jackie hanging a couple feet to his right, in the same position he was. Blood matted the side of the Septic’s head – presumably where he was hit with the bat – and more had dried on his face in a small trail from his nose, still completely out cold.

Swallowing down the fear that was tying itself into knots in his chest, Silver reached out with his aura, poking Jackie in the side of the head and being careful to avoid the open wound. “Jackie! Jackie, _wake up!_ Come on!”

Jackie groaned in his sleep, eyelids fluttering. “Fffuck off, Marv, lemme sleep…” Silver poked him again, growing increasingly more frantic, and Jackie shifted, brow furrowing. “Marvin, I said fuck off! Seriously man, just –” His eyes finally opened, and he immediately went rigid, eyes going _wide_ as he took in their surroundings.

Silver split in a relieved smile. “Oh thank God! You’re okay! Well, relatively.” He ghosted his aura over the side of Jackie’s head.

The Septic winced, glancing up and pulling at his arms. “…Silver? Do you know where we are?”

Silver’s smile fell. “No. I just woke up, too, I don’t know _what’s_ happening.”

Jackie gave a frustrated sigh, giving one last tug on his arms before looking over. He paled. “Silver, your mask! It’s gone!”

Silver blanched. “ _What?!_ ” Now that Jackie had pointed it out, he could feel that the fabric was missing, the black tint to everything gone. He began to struggle, pulling on the chains and jerking his legs. “Oh this is bad, Jackie, this is really _really_ bad!”

“Hey! Silver, calm down! We’ve gotten out of worse, and we’ll get out of this!”

Silver shook his head wildly, ignoring the dizzying throb it caused. “No, you didn’t see it Jackie, the-the-the robber, he _shot_ that kid, the one who tried to warn us, he _killed_ him, who knows what he’ll do to us!” Jackie’s eyes widened, and he opened his mouth to reply, but then a voice cut through the air, making their blood run cold.

“Hopefully nothing, as long as you obey.”

The door in front of them – Silver didn’t even _notice_ that – swung open, and the man from the jewelry story was stepping into the room, hands held behind his back. Jackie snarled, jerking forward. “Who are you? What do you want with us?”

The man simply raised an eyebrow. “I don’t care about _you_. You’re more or less collateral. I really wanted _him_.” His gaze shifted to Silver, giving him a wide, feral smile, and Silver shrunk away as much as he could, paling significantly.

“Me?! What do you want _me_ for?!”

The man smirked, taking a step forward, but then Jackie jerked again. “Don’t you go anywhere _near_ him!” His eyes beginning to glow a brilliant green, and then lasers were shooting out of his eyes on a direct path toward their abductor. The man rapidly brought his hands around to the front the second he saw the glow, revealing the mirror he held tightly in his grasp as he ducked behind it. By the time Jackie realized his mistake it was too late; the lasers were bouncing off the mirror, redirected elsewhere in the room.

Grazing right by Silver’s left side.

He choked out a startled cry, breathing heavily as _agony_ set in. He went limp in his bonds, hands however clenching into fists. He hardly payed attention as the man dropped the mirror with a yelp, staring at one of his fingers that had blistered marginally. “Well, that could’ve been a lot worse! Glad I do my research!”

Neither hero was focusing on him. Jackie was too busy writhing in his chains, staring at Silver with wide, panicked eyes. “Silver! Silver, are you okay, oh God, Silver, I’m so sorry!”

Silver glanced down at the wound. The lasers had barely clipped him, but it was still enough to have burned his costume right off his body in a large patch, the revealed flesh blistered and burned. The fabric around the edges had melted right into his skin, making every movement feel like lighting shooting up his sides. Still, he shot Jackie a pained smile, trying his best to reassure his friend. “I’m…I’m okay! It’s not that bad, I promise!”

Jackie whipped his head toward the man, levitating slightly and the chains pulled tight under the force he was putting on them. “Bastard! Just fuckin’ _leave us alone!_ What did _we_ ever do t’you?”

The man scoffed. “Like I said, I have no interest in _you_. And I never intended to hurt either of you. _You_ attacked _me_ , so I reacted.” He raised an eyebrow as Jackie growled, still pulling on the chains. “You might as well give up. Those are industrial, meant to withstand the weight of shipping containers. Superhuman strength or not, you’re not getting out of those.” Jackie went slack, clearly frustrated, and the other man wheeled on Silver, grinning brightly. “Now, what I want from _you_ is information.”

Silver’s brow furrowed, barely able to concentrate as a sensation not unlike white-hot needles being slowly driven into his side consumed him. “In…information? About what?”

“About Darkiplier and Wilford Warfstache.” Both of them started, and he continued, stepping closer the Silver with each word. “They are the two most _powerful_ creatures in the entire realm. If you cross them, chances are you wind up _dead_ without them even batting an eye. _I_ want to know their weaknesses.” He hissed the last sentence through clenched teeth, nearly chest-to-chest with Silver. “No one _that_ powerful is completely invulnerable. And you _will_ tell me what they are.”

Silver laughed, the sound tinted with pain-hazed delirium. “Their only ‘weaknesses’ are each other, so whatever you’re planning, good luck.” It was an outright lie; Dark suffered from severe chronic pain, to the point where some days were so bad he couldn’t even get out of bed. And Wilford…in those very rare moments where he is fully lucid, he becomes so full of self-loathing and self-destructive that once he nearly jumped off the roof of the manor. Dark and Wilford had _plenty_ of weaknesses.

But he was _not_ about to say that out loud.

The man tilted his head to the side, giving him a small smile. “See, this is why I took your mask. I don’t give a damn who your ‘civilian identity’ is. I just needed to see your eyes. Because right now…” His smile broadened. “…I can tell you’re lying.”

Silver stiffened, breath hitching as the man stepped even closer. And then he was pressing a hand to the charred wound on his side. Silver gasped, attempting to curl his body in order to protect it but of course was stopped short by the chains. A high-pitched whine escaped him before he could smother it, and the man pressed harder, making him twitch. “You _will_ tell me what I want to know. You don’t have a choice.”

Silver grinned, and the man stepped back. “I’m not telling you _shit_ ,” he spat. “But I will say one thing; Dark is _extremely_ territorial and possessive, of all of us. Once he finds you – and he _will_ – you are a dead man.”

Their abductor suddenly scowled, and Silver didn’t even have time to brace himself before he was landing a punch to gut, causing him to jerk painfully in his chains and he cried out. The man just smiled up at him. “All the more reason to _persuade_ you, isn’t it?” He laid his hand back on his side, this time digging his nails in, and this time Silver couldn’t hold back to scream that tore itself from his throat, thrashing wildly in an attempt to _get away_.

“Stop! Stop, you’re _hurtin’_ him!” Jackie reached out with his aura in a frantic attempt to soothe Silver against the _agony_ he was currently being put through and Silver gratefully latched on in return. “You said you wouldn’t hurt us!”

The man growled, tightening his grip. “I said I wouldn’t hurt you _if_ you obeyed.” Still, he backed off, leaving Silver limp and gasping for air, blood now leaking from the wound and tears trailing down his face. “I’ll be back,” he snarled. “And you _better_ be ready to tell me something I can _use_.”

He slammed the door in his wake, and Silver let out a sob. Jackie immediately wrapped his aura around him, the only comfort he could give at the moment, and Silver wisped out his own in return. “We’ll be okay, Silver.” Jackie tried for a reassuring smile. “You know Dark is comin’. Anti is probably raisin’ Hell too, because, as antisocial as he can be, he is one overprotective son of a bitch.”

Silver gave a strained laugh, words slurring. “If thossse two are working together there really _is_ no hope for thiss guy.”

Jackie chuckled, shaking his head, before sighing. “I just hope they find us soon. We’re not gonna get out of here on our own, and I am _really_ worried about what _he’ll_ do t’get what he wants.” He swallowed harshly. “God, I’m so _sorry_ , Silver! If I had known I never would’ve – are you sure you’re okay?”

Silver was still breathing far too heavily for him to be _okay_ , but he smiled anyway. “Ss’not your fault, Jackie. Neither of us coulda known. I’ll be fine.”

Jackie shifted to stare up at the ceiling. “I just hope you still are by the time we get out of here.”


	4. Chapter 4

“ _W̯̍h̰̀y̠̏_ ̪̀a͔̐r̾͢e͎ ̢̋w̟̆e̠͋ ̡͞ _h̭̍e̩̔r͎͋e̙͂_?̫̿”

Dark sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose as Anti crossed his arms, leaning against the wall of the jewelry store. “ _Because_ , Anti, the scene of the crime _always_ has answers. You want to find Jackie, don’t you?” Anti just scoffed, rolling his eyes and buzzing annoyingly loud, most likely _purposefully_ trying to piss Dark off. His own ringing picked up volume. “Stop complaining and make yourself _useful_. Go search the security cameras in the area. See if you can spot something.”

Anti raised an eyebrow, but his body fuzzed all the same, disappearing into the electrical system. Dark groaned. Anti was _such_ a _fucking pain_ …but he was willing to work with him in order to find Silver. He paced the area in front of the jewelry store, crinkling his nose at the blood splatter on the wall inside, and let his aura flare, scanning the area as he waited for Anti’s return.

“Hey! What do you think you’re doing?”

Dark spun around. A human – a police officer, it looked like – was running toward him, a furious look on her face. He grinned, and within seconds he was on her, his aura wrapping around them and enveloping them in the dark. “Hello there…” His voice was practically a purr, resting both hands on his cane as he watched her swallow nervously, her eyes going wide. “Are you one of the humans who ‘processed’ this scene?”

She opened and closed her mouth a couple times, no sound coming out, but when Dark’s grin contorted into a snarl she miraculously found her voice. “Um, yes! Yes I-I-I am…I…”

Instantly Dark straightened, his demeanor returning to its borderline sickly pleasantness. “Excellent. Now, would you mind telling me _exactly_ what you know? What happened here? Who took the Silver Shepherd?”

The woman shook her head, mouth still hanging open. “I can’t…I can’t disclose that to the public, you shouldn’t even be here –”

Dark’s mirror images appeared, shell beginning to crack as his body flickered between tearing at his hair and _screaming._ “ _Who. Took. Him?_ ”

“We don’t know!” She looked close to tears. “A-all we have is that whoever it was drove a black truck! That’s it, whoever did this was _good_ , they didn’t leave a _trace_ evidence-wise!”

Dark smiled again, nodding his head at her. “Thank you. We’ll take care of the rest.” He withdrew his aura and she promptly collapsed to the ground. He spun on his heel, banging on the nearest electrical pole. “Anti! I have something!” Almost immediately Anti fizzled back into existence, still standing with his arms crossed and an eyebrow raised. Dark had to _greatly_ resist the urge to slap him. “Our offenders drove a black truck. Did you see one of those on the cameras?”

Anti rolled his eyes. “O̗͋ṇ̂ḽy̤͠ ̱͋a͉̓b̗ō͇u̖ṭ̀ ̖̆ _t͈͆ẇ̭ë̞́n̺̑ṫ͢y͡ͅ_.̳͐ ̨͊A̰̚t̜̃ ͜͡ _l̽ͅe̬͒a̘̍ŝ͖t̹_.̣͋ ̟̇D̓͢ō͕ ̩̿ỵ̈́ǒ̟u̥͌ ͚͡ _s̞̓ẹ̏ṙ͟i̖̍ö͖́ů̪s̱͠l̜͑y̬̐_ ͟͡ȇ̪x̧̕p̛̪ḙ̇ç̈t͎͡ ̕ͅȕ̪s̫̓ ̜͗t̳͛ō̭ ̦̍ḟ͉o̫̽l̹̏l̉ͅo̗͐w̰͂ ̮ _e͙̅â̤c̥̒h͔͂_ ͇̚ȏ̖n̍͜e̹͌?̠̊

Dark scowled. “I am willing to do _whatever_ it takes. Are you suggesting that you are not?”

Anti hissed. “Y̡̊o͇͂u͖͠ ̞̈a̱͋r̺̾e͈ ̦̿ _p͔̈e̯̚r̜̈f̡̕ĕ͔c̦̄t͍̂l̼̾y̛͜_ ͖̔a͖͒w̗̌a̡͂r̘̿e̯͒ ̧̉o͙͆f̬̀ ̒͜ẁ̘ĥ̝a̝̿ṱ ͙̄I̱͑'͖̽d͓͝ ̱̚d͂ͅo̮̍ ̳̅t͉̓ò̟ ̝͘s͓a͙̋v͚͊e͕̐ ̓͟J̮̑a̙ĉ͇k͕̋i̭ë̟́.͕͘”

Dark pointed back up the cameras. “So stop _fucking_ complaining and get back in there! Right now, you are the _only_ one capable of tracking this _human_ down in any sort of reasonable time! Lead the way, Anti! Their fates are in _your_ hands!”


	5. Chapter 5

Silver had just managed to drift off into a light doze when the door burst open again. He just pressed his forehead against his arm, breathing ragged, while Jackie’s aura tensed around him, the Septic obviously bristling in defense. His head swam, the burn on his side _really_ beginning to grow irritated and inflamed.

“What the _fuck_ do you want now?”

The man didn’t respond, simply stepped to the side. “You remember my friend, right?” Both Jackie and Silver tensed as the bigger man from earlier appeared in the doorway, still wielding his bat. Silver squinted, finally able to get a good look at him. He was built like an NFL player, and judging by the bloody wound on the side of Jackie’s head and the matching one that no doubt graced the back of his own head, he was just as strong. Silver swallowed harshly, and out of the corner of his eye he saw Jackie give him a look. “He’s here to help me _convince_ you to give me what I want.”

Silver shook his head. “I’m not gonna help you! Dark and Wilford are my family. As violent and prone to homicide as they are, and as much as I don’t approve of the _vast_ majority of their actions, I would _never_ betray them like you’re asking me to.”

The man shrugged, crossing his arms and leaning against the wall, crossing one ankle over the other. “Suit yourself. I’m pretty confident you’ll change your mind though.” He nodded to his companion.

Silver flinched, chains rattling, as the big one stepped towards him. “What is he doing, what are you doing – _AH!_ ” The bat impacted with his chest, knocking all the breath from his body and he wheezed, coughing harshly and struggling to breathe correctly. He wasn’t given much time to recover before it connected again – this time to his gut – and then Silver _couldn’t_ breathe; his chest was moving but no air was coming in. He began to panic, tugging weakly on his chains, and eventually his winded body managed to suck in a harsh breath, gasping and hanging limp.

Jackie began to thrash again, levitating off the ground and pulling with all his might. “No, stop it! You’ll break him! If you break him he won’t be _able_ t’tell you, please!”

The man fixed Jackie with a long look before sliding his gaze back to Silver. “…A broken songbird still can sing. Continue.”

The bat cracked against his knees and Silver sobbed, but adamantly refused to say a word. Jackie, however, wouldn’t stop screaming, shouting profanities and curses as the bat continued to impact with Silver’s body. The man gave an exasperated sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose, and the bigger one stopped. “You know, I’m getting _really_ tired of your voice. Perhaps I should’ve just killed you on the streets.”

Jackie stared his down with defiant eyes as he moved towards him. The second he took a step, Silver stirred, raising his head with blood trailing from the corner of his mouth. “Don’t _fucking_ touch him, he has nothing you want.”

The man didn’t even bat an eye, moving out of Silver’s line of sight. “Relax, I’m just going to _shut him up_.”

Silver’s head dropped, unable to hold it up for long, but it shot right back up when Jackie began to speak. “Fuck off, don’t come near me, HEY – mmph!”

Silver could only watch, hands clenching and unclenching into fists, as a wad of cloth was shoved into Jackie’s mouth, quickly followed by _several_ layers of duct tape covering his lips, keeping the gag secure. The man backed off, wearing a bright smile as Jackie glared, his eyes tinted green. “Ah ah ah, none of that. You remember what happened _last_ time you did that, don’t you?” Silver tensed as his gaze slid to him, the burn on his side throbbing and prickling.

The man clapped his hands once, startling the both of them. “Right! Where were we?” He fixed Silver with a wide smile. “I believe you were about to tell me _everything_.”

Silver laughed, head lolling back. “In your dreams.”

He let out a huff, crossing his arms. “Stubbornness _really_ won’t get you anywhere. You’ll talk eventually. But if you insist…” He gestured to the one with the bat. Silver braced himself as the weapon came flying towards him, squeezing his eyes shut.

It impacted right onto his burn.

Silver screamed.

His body twitched, his vision fading around the edges. He could see the blood now smeared across the side of the bat. He was vaguely aware of Jackie _losing his mind_ next to him, making muffled noises that were no doubt vulgar insults, and he reached out weakly with his aura in an attempt to soothe his friend’s violent and furious struggling. In response, a high-pitched whistle pierced the air, and Silver wasn’t remotely in the right mind to comprehend what Jackie was essentially _screaming_ at them. All he could do was twitch and sob, tears staining his face.

“What the _Hell_ is that, what are you doing?!” Both of their abductors had covered their ears, the bat clattering to the floor.

Silver gave a strained laugh, breathing ragged. “It’s our way of communication. It’s not meant for short distances, sorry about that.” Jackie’s screaming – _somehow_ – got _louder_ , to the point where even Silver was beginning to cringe.

A crash sounded from above, and all of the lights exploded, the color leeching from the area. Silver grinned, and Jackie stopped whistling, the Septic finally going still as they glanced at each other. “And _that_ ,” Silver started. “would be our rescues party.”

Slowly, the man uncovered his ears, his eyes for too bright. “You said Darkiplier was possessive, right?” Silver swallowed, not liking where this was going. “He’s not going to like that you’re injured.”

Silver jerked as the man reached behind his back, drawing closer. “Wh-what are you doing? Dark’s already going to kill you, you _don’t_ want to piss him off further.”

He froze, mouth going dry and paling significantly when he brought his hand back around, revealing a gun. “On the contrary, if I’m already dead, then I’ve got nothing to lose. So –” He hefted the gun, giving Silver a wide grin. “I’m going to give your _demon_ an ultimatum.”


	6. Chapter 6

Dark and Anti stared up at the unassuming house, Dark’s hands on his hips. “Are you sure this is the right place?”

Anti shot him a scathing glare. “D͈̏o̼̒ ͓͐ _y̢͒ơ̧u̘_ ͖̒w̳̆a͈̓ṋ̽n͈̿a̢̒ ̙̉t̗͂ř͖y̠͗ ̜̑h͊͟ù̬n̳̅t͇̂i͈͆n̯̒g͙̓ ̏͟t̪̑h͙͂r͉͡o̭̒ű͙g̹͂h̺͑ ̗͌s͕͠ê̲c͇̎u̱͋r̞̿i͙̾t̹͛y̖ ͕̍c̼̚ȧ̺m̠̐ḛ̈r͓̊a̙͞s̛͉?̲̄ ̣̈ _Y̘̍e̕ͅs̹͌_ ̀͜Ȋ̲'͈̄m̝̅ ͓͠f̩̃u̫̕ć̖k̺͊ĭ̺n͙͝g͙͋ ͖͑s͖̚ü͕r̼͑ē̻!̦͠ ̬̉Ḻ̀o̙̓o͔͑k̩̚,̫̑ ͉́b̜̾l̎͢a͔͂c̣̓k̪͑ ̰̏ţ͞r̀ͅu̝̽c͖̈k͍̄,̯̆ ̞̈r̤͡ị͠ǧ͍h̥̚t͚͘ ̥̑t̨͡ḥ͛e̺̋r̦͌e̩̍!̀͟”

Dark froze briefly, staring at the truck, before stalking over. His ringing picked up volume, his form splitting, and his grip tightening on his cane as he gazed down at the two pools of blood in the bed of the truck, no doubt where Jackie and Silver had laid. He growled low in his chest as Anti came up beside him, the glitch’s own body sparking and fuzzing. “They will pay for this,” he spat. “I will make them _bleed_.”

Anti opened his mouth to reply, but then the whistling started.

Anti’s eyes went wide. “T̺́h̺̏a̬̒t̥͊'̜̃š̤ ̮̃J̳͞ȧ̤c̬͊k̰͞i̳̎e̙̓.͖͗ ̥̿T̫̊h̼̿á͜t̮͡'̲̔s̰̒ ̲̏h̪͑o̤͗w̡̍ ͇̅h͔̿ḙ̔ ̧̌ả̼n̗̕d̳͊ ̒͟ _y̟̅o̝͌ư͇r̅͢_ ̨̀ẖ̒e̗̊r̲̊o͜͝ ̛̝c̺͠o̫m̢̓m̹̚u̹̓n͉̎ȋ̩c̢͂a̢t͍e͉̅ ͍̆f̺͋r̈͟ǒ̡m̤̚ ̦͑ l̉͟o͚͞n̡̎g̡͛ ̥̉d̰̈́i͉͛ṡ̘t̮̕â̘n̹c̙̊e̳̾s̺̕.̡̌ ̗H̼̚e̦ ̂͜t͌͜a̗͑ŭ͍ḡ͓h̡̑t͓̓ ̰͝i͕͡t̝̄ ̤̊t̟͗ơͅ ̰̕m̭͠e̯̓,͕̐ ͓̋a̞̿ ̟͛ḷ̀ _o̤͡n͓̒g̳͐_ ͎̑t͔̿i̢͗m̡̂é̗ ̨̓a̭̅ġ̬o̪.̫̈ ̣̓H̢̄o͍̎l̪̆d̦̕ ̢̍ǒ̫n̢̚.͈͘.̟̑.̪̔” He grinned. “F͚͂u̺c̩͑k͖̈ḭ͘n͍͋g̕͜ ͕̓ _H̟̃ḙ͂l̡͑l̥͌ ͉͐_ t͙̒h͚͑ảͅt͓̿  ̹̽k͓̄i͠ͅḍ̒ ̟͛c̯͆ḁ̃n̗̊ ͓̿s͈͡w͚͊e̻͗a̼̓ṙ̥!̜̆ ̜̃B̥͛ũ̻t̙͝ ̨̃i̦̋n͚̕ ̦̈́b̨͐ẹ̈t͙͆w̨̒e̳͡ẽ̮n̒͜ ̟͝t̤͠h͇͘a̢͞t͖̄.̘̿.̩̂.̓͟i̙͝t̜̃ ̝͋s͓̈́o͕u̦͘n͍̕d͓͋sͅ ̺͛l͙̐i̿ͅk͍̾e̥ ̞̎h̨͆ĕ͓'̡̋s̰͌ ̛͚b̮̆e̫̚g̭͆g̯̽ī͢n̠̉g̖͐ ̦͆f̯o̯̕ȓ̤ ̖͂s̗͒o̹͋m͔̆e̪͋o̖͞n͎͂e̥ ͍̊t̗͞ọ͆ ̮͠s͉̔t̰̚o͓̿p͖.̕͢ ̩̎T͖̆o̪͛ ̼́ṣt͍o͗͜p̲̅ ̥ h̲̕u̹̕r̦t̨̆i̛̠n̖͆g̒ͅ ͕͘'͙̇h̔͜i͙̓m̥̏'̦̑.̭͞”

Dark stiffened. “ _Silver_.”

Within _seconds_ he was kicking down the front door, his aura flaring and writhing as the color gradually drained around him. The lights began to flicker before they exploded, Anti’s own rage visible through his barely-cohesive body, glitching violently. The two demons stormed the house, Anti immediately vanishing into the electrical system to search faster while Dark stood in place, closing his eyes and reaching out with his aura and searching for Silver. He found him below, latching onto his disturbingly weak aura, at the same moment Anti popped back into existence in front of him, nearly chest-to-chest.

“G̘͗e͍͗t̫͑ ̯͊d͉̍ǒ̲w̟͊n̠͠s͍̍t͍̍ȧ̧i̔͜r͍s̖̿.͈͝ ̭̔ _N͋͢ó̭w͡ͅ_.̭̒”

Anti disappeared, and Dark tore a hole in the Void, using his grasp on Silver’s aura as a guide. He reappeared, Anti next to him, in the basement, cane held tightly in his grasp with his best neutral mask. What he saw, however, threatened to break that mask as his two mirror images began to flicker.

A man with a black mask was standing behind Silver, the hero held tightly in chains, and pressing the end of a gun against his temple. A nasty, sickly burn was immediately evident on Silver’s side, weeping blood, and his breathing was far too ragged, rattling in his chest, for him to be uninjured elsewhere. He looked…defeated, staring at Dark with tired eyes and a small smile, his mask missing and more blood visible trailing from the corner of his mouth.

When Anti let out a distorted hiss, Dark spared a fleeting glance at Jackie. The Septic was clearly _furious_ , jerking in his own bonds and several layers of duct tape covering his mouth. A large man – Dark instantly recognized him as the one who had knocked the two out in the first place – was standing behind him, one hand fisted tight in Jackie’s hair and the other holding a blade to his throat. Judging by the numerous bleeding nicks covering his throat, it had certainly been a struggle just getting the knife into position.

“You’re not supposed to be here.” The one holding a gun to Silver’s head spoke, glaring daggers at Anti.

Anti bared his fangs at him. “Y͘ͅo̭͝u̳͡ ̨̏t̖̾o̳̽o̜̒k̜̂ ̳͑m̹̅ỳ̹ ̠̂l̨̕ȉ̺t͕̿t͔̋l̤̍e̍ͅ ̗̈́b̥͂r͙̊o̪̐t̜͒h̗̾e̩̾r̠͠.̙͛ ͐͟I̤̒ ͑͢w̫͆ȁ͇s̙̔ ̙̂ _a̗l̦̿w̥͑a̛̠y͉͊s̰̚_ ̨̊g̖̓o̮̓ị̇n͍̍g̙͝ ͎͒t̨̎ǫ̈́ ̳͌b̠͒ḙ̍ ̏ͅh̖̏ẹ͝ṟ͐e̼͗.͊ͅ ̮̎ Y̤̓ọ̔ṳ ̣͐h̪̕a̞̎v̬͂e̢̕ ̰̓à̦c̾͢h̗͋i͘͜ẻ̱v̲͘ẹ̿d͟͠ ̨̇t͠ͅh̗͋ĕ̝ ̭͠g̻r͕̍e̳ȁ͍t̩̚ ̛ͅm͙̒i̧̕șf͎͆o̰̊r͉t͎̀ư̙n̝͑e̢͌ ̤͒o͢f͐͜ ̟͆a̢̽n̤͑g̭̔e͙̔r̡̐ị̽ň̨g͚̅ ̝t̤̑w̠͊ô̮ ͔͠d̬̈́e̤͐m̿͢o̹͠n̙͒s̫͋ ̝̆ï̹n̖ ̤̎o͙̒ṉ̋e̦̅ ̼̐f̧̀e͙̊l̫͛l̲̐ ̖͌s͇̽w̲͛ö̜o͔͛p͚̾.͔̄”

The other swallowed, obviously faltering, and he just pressed the gun harder against Silver’s head, making him wince, and Jackie jerked again, a muffled noise escaping him. The man’s eyes darted to Dark, who simply cracked his neck back into place, staring him down with cold eyes. “I don’t care about _that_ one! It was just supposed to be _you_ , I…”

“You _what._ ” Dark finally stepped forward, and the man went rigid. Dark flashed a smile, feigning empathy. “It’s a lot different in person, isn’t it? Meeting me. This was some _revenge_ plot, wasn’t it? What, did I kill someone important to you once upon a time? Is that what this is about?” His aura reached out, curling around the man’s arm. With no warning, his expression dropped into a snarl, and his arm snapped, forcing him to drop the gun with a choked, agonized cry. Dark continued to wrap his aura around him, dragging him forward and hefting him upright. He could _see_ the fear glowing bright in his eyes. “Did you not think I would retaliate? You took what’s _mine_. You _injured_ one of _mine_. And you will pay dearly for it.”

The man’s mouth upturned in a smile, despite his body slowly being enveloped by Dark’s aura. His red soul was _screaming_ for blood. “He wasn’t kidding when he said you were possessive. All I wanted was for you to _pay_ for what you’ve done. You and your friend, Wilford Warfstache.”

Dark growled low in his throat. “Excuse you, _we_ are getting _married_.” His aura wrapped around his head, and then he crushed him, not even giving him time to scream before he was dripping onto the floor, nothing but a bloody, pulpy mess.

Dropping the body (or what remained of it, at least), he dismissed his cane and his images and darted to Silver, eyes finally going wide with distress. At some point, Silver’s eyes had slipped shut, and his breathing sounded even worse up close. “Silver! Are you alright, what did they _do_ to you?” He ghosted a hand over the burn, and Silver flinched, cracking open one eye.

“Hey…Dark…” Silver gave him a small smile. “I’m fine, I promise. Just…get me down. Please.”

Dark waved a hand and the chains snapped. Silver immediately dropped, forcing Dark to catch him, and he let out a high-pitched whimper as Dark supported him, obviously more injured than what was apparent. “Oh Silver, what did they _do?_ ”

Silver drew in a shaky breath. “He…wanted information. On you and Wilford. Wanted to know your weaknesses.”

Dark raised an eyebrow. “Really? And what did you say?”

“I told him to shove it up his ass.”

Dark let out a surprised laugh, and suddenly both of their attentions were snapped to the two Septics as Jackie began _screaming_ , Anti finally having managed to release him from his chains. The large man laid on the ground, his own knife buried in his throat and bleeding out sluggishly. “ _ANTI LET GO OF ME, FUCKIN’ LET GO!_ ” He was kicking and struggling wildly, Anti’s arms wrapped around his torso and pinning his arms to his sides. “ _YOU DIDN’T SEE WHAT THEY DID, I NEED TO MAKE SURE HE’S OKAY!_ ”

Anti shot Dark a wary look before releasing the hero. Jackie immediately darted to Silver, taking his weight from Dark. Silver let out a little laugh, pushing weakly at Jackie’s chest. “Jackie, I keep telling you, I’m _fine_. Stop freaking out.”

Jackie’s eyes hardened. “They _beat_ you with a _bat_ , Silver, don’t pull that bullshit with me.”

Dark’s eyes narrowed. “They did _what_.”

Silver’s gaze darted between the two of them, trying to be reassuring and failing miserably. “They _may_ have hit me a few times, but I’m okay, I promise!”

Dark shook his head, slotting his arm beneath Silver’s shoulders and hefting him into his grasp. “Oh no, I’m still taking you to Dr. Iplier, if only for that burn. So just shut up and make it easier on yourself.” All Silver did was let out a sigh, head lolling back. He turned his head to face the Septics. “Would you two like a shortcut home?”

Anti nodded, though it was clearly hesitant. “I̥̊ ̪̐n̝̉e̤͆e̲d̖͂ ̪͒S̰͝ĉ͓h̛͇n͍̈́ẽ͎e̜̅p͔̄ ̻ṯ̚o̝̕ ̭̅l̡̕ö͉́ö̻́k̤̓ ̻̉h̰͑i̩̽m̘ ̡̎ȏ͕v͚̀ë̙́r͎̀ ̼͘a͖͂s͍̃ ̜͊q̯̓u̓͜i͔͋ċͅk̙̅ḻ͋y͟͞ ̯͑ a͍̓s͖̿ ̝̄p̫͗ő̖ś̙ŝ̪i̹̓b͇̋l̛͕e͍͒.͇̚ ̟͑J̥ü̳s̟̈́t͕̒ ̦͞i̘͐ṋ̈́ ͕̂c̦̉a̗͛s̺̑ê̙.͑͟”

Jackie scoffed, crossing his arms. “ _I’m_ not the one they hurt.”

“J͈̉ȁ̪c̭̉k͓͌i̢̒e̻͠,̮ ̆͢y̅͜o̝͒u̟̎r̦ ̝̏h̲̿e̺̽a̖d̪̂ ͚̚i̞̅s͎͐ ̕ͅl̠͆i͇͋t͓̍e͛͟ȓ̟a̭̽ļ͗l͖̿ÿ͚ ̦͑f̩͡u̟̕c̑͢k̹̎ȋ̺n͇̕g̞͞ ͕̑b̛̹ĺ̙e̡͡e̿͢d̯̚ḯ͍n͉̂g̼̍,͈͗ ̤́s̜͗ȟ̢u̅͟t̟͌ ̫͆t̬̂ḧ̺́e̦̾ ̲́f̰́u̖͌c͉̏k̳̋ ̥͆ŭ̟p̖͛.̮̀”

Dark tore open the Void, securing his grip on Silver before stepping through. “Come on then. I have my own to look after, so hurry up.” He glanced at Silver. “Will you be okay for a little longer?”

Silver was practically shaking in his grasp. “Yes…but I wouldn’t say no to a Dr. Iplier visit when we get home.”

Dark snorted. “You didn’t have a choice either way.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright! Title is from a line in the Mary Poppins Returns soundtrack, the 'Turning Turtle' song, I wrote this back in like early January after I'd just seen the movie and I fell IN LOVE with that line so I spun it on its head (ha) and wrote a kidnapping story. Also, I apologize that Dark and Anti's dynamic ended up being bickering toddlers, honestly, the amount of TIMES I rewrote their line but they just ended up TODDLERS so I said 'fuck it' and rolled with it. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed, as always, and Sunday will be a dorky story about the Jims!


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